Figure 4.

Three bovine plasma protein fractions (BP, ABP and SBI) stimulated specific human adult gut microbes ex vivo. (A) PCA summarizing the impact on the gut microbiota of three bovine plasma protein fractions (BP/ABP/SBI), dosed at an equivalent of 5 g/day, with or without prior dialysis as a simulation of small intestinal absorption, compared to the NSC, as tested via the SIFR^® technology for human adults (n = 6). The PCA was based on the standardized abundances of significantly affected OTUs by any of the treatments (FDR = 0.20) as quantified via 16S rRNA gene sequencing combined with flow cytometry (cells/mL), at 48 h after initiation of colonic incubation. The different OTUs that underly this clustering are shown by the blue arrows. In the dotted frames, a detailed representation of the OTUs that significantly increased or decreased upon treatment with the test products is shown. (B) Heatmap demonstrating the impact of the bovine plasma protein fractions on OTUs that were significantly affected by any of the treatments (FDR = 0.20), expressed as log₂ (treatment/NSC), averaged over six human adults at 48 h. Significant differences compared to the NSC are indicated by bold and underlining. BP = bovine plasma, ABP = albumin-enriched bovine plasma, SBI = serum-derived bovine immunoglobulin, PCA = principal component analysis, SIFR = systemic intestinal fermentation research, NSC = no substrate control, and OTU = operational taxonomic unit.